The Canisius College men's
basketball team opens its run at the 2013 MAAC Men's Basketball Championship
this afternoon when the team plays Iona at 4:30 p.m.

The Griffs are 18-12
overall and 11-7 in MAAC play after falling to Rider by the score of 65-61
March 2, on Senior Day in the Koessler Athletic Center.

This marks just the second
time since 2000 where the Blue and Gold have earned a first-round bye into the
MAAC Tournament Quarterfinal round.

FAST BREAK POINTS

Canisius is playing Iona in
the MAAC Tournament for the sixth time in program history and the Griffs hold a
3-2 record in the previous five contests.

The Griffs earned the No. 5
seed in this year's tournament, the team's highest seeding in the MAAC
Tournament since 1999 when the team was seeded fourth.

Canisius is 22-22 all-time
in MAAC Tournament games. Coming into today's game against Iona, only six
members of this year's roster have played in a MAAC Tournament game, led by
senior Alshwan Hymes, who has played in four
tourney contests.

The Griffs enter today's
game ranked fourth nationally in 3-point field goals per game with 9.2.
Canisius hit 26 3-pointers in its two games against Iona this season.

Junior guard Billy Baron became the first Griff since Darren Fenn in 1999-00 to be named to the All-MAAC First
Team when the conference announced its all-star units last Monday. Baron ranks
fifth in the MAAC in scoring (16.6 ppg) and leads the league with his 5.1
assists per game.

Senior guard Harold Washington was named All-MAAC Third
Team last Monday. He scored a game-high 24 points in the team's 80-70 loss to
Niagara last season in the MAAC Tournament first round game in Springfield,
Mass.

Junior forward Chris Manhertz enters today's game averaging 8.8 rebounds per
game this season. He currently ranks 20th all-time in Canisius history with his
542 career boards.

ABOUT THE GAELS

Iona earned the MAAC
Tournament's No. 4 seed after the Gaels posted a 17-13 overall record and an
11-7 mark in MAAC play.

The Gaels start the
postseason having dropped five of their last eight games after losing at
Canisius Feb. 2, by a score of 77-74.

Iona's three-point loss to
Canisius in Buffalo Feb. 2, was one of 15 games that Iona played this season
where the final score was decided by five points or less. The Gaels were 4-11
in those games.

As a team, the Gaels start
this weekend ranked third in the nation in scoring average with 81.2 points per
game.

Senior guard Lamont Jones won the MAAC's regular-season scoring title
with his 23.2 points per game, which ranks third in the country. He was named
the MAAC's Player of the Year on Thursday night.

Junior guard Sean Armand ranks second on the team with 16.8 points per
game and his 3.37 3-point field goals per game ranks eighth in the nation. He
was named to the All-MAAC Second Team last Monday.

Sophomore forward David Laury earned All-MAAC Third Team honors in his first
season in New Rochelle after he scored 13.0 points to go with 10.1 rebounds per
game in 21 contests.

CANISIUS - IONA ALL-TIME SERIES

This will be the 61st
all-time meeting between these two schools in a series that started Feb. 19,
1955 in The Aud in Buffalo.

Iona holds a 32-28 lead in
the series, with the Gaels taking five of the last seven meetings overall.

This will mark the sixth
time these two schools have played in the MAAC Tournament, with Canisius
holding a 3-2 lead in that portion of the series.

The last time these two
squads met in the MAAC's postseason event was March 7, 2008, when Canisius
became the first No. 10 seed in conference history to earn a win in the
tournament when the Griffs posted a 64-59 victory over Iona in Albany, N.Y.

The Griffs and Gaels have
combined for 520 total points in the last three games in this series, dating
back to Feb. 2, 2012.